Beko appliances possible cause of tower block fire

Beko frost-free freezer may have caused tower block fire.

7 July 2011

The London Fire Brigade is believed to have identified a Beko frost-free freezer as the possible cause of a serious tower block fire in Bermondsey, south London. UK company Beko has issued a statement stating that the defrost timer on the frost-free freezer can fail and overheat. Homes and businesses in the UK could contain as many as 500,000 potentially faulty freezers leaving them at serious risk of a fire and possible injury.

Householders with Beko frost-free fridge freezers are being urged by fire experts to check that the model they own is not one at the centre of a product safety warning. The London Fire Brigade (LFB) believes the incident in Bermondsey, south London underlines the potentially serious danger of failure in the appliances which has already been flagged up by the company as a cause for concern. It is believed there could be as many as 500,000 of the potentially faulty fridge freezers still in homes and businesses throughout the UK.

Steve Turek, assistant commissioner for fire safety regulation, said: "Any fire can be lethal but the LFB is particularly concerned about this because fires involving any sort of fridge freezer develop rapidly and produce an enormous amount of toxic smoke.

"Having established this link, we have worked closely with Beko to ensure the public is kept safe.

"However, the brigade urges everyone who has a Beko fridge freezer to check it is not one of those highlighted by the company as potentially faulty."

People who own models manufactured between January 2000 and October 2006 have been advised to check to see if their appliance is affected. A list of model number.

Leigh Day and faulty products

Specialist product liability lawyers at Leigh Day have extensive experience of dealing with defective goods that have caused injury. The team has been identified by Chambers guide to the legal profession and by the Legal 500 as the UK’s number 1 firm in this field. The team has secured significant amounts of compensation for people who have been injured by faulty medical devices, unsafe drugs and other consumer products such as dishwashers. If you would like to speak to one of our product liability solicitors please contact Jill Paterson or Gene Matthews on 020 7650 1219.